Drown It Out
by Tea Packet
Summary: Sango’s boyfriend Naraku is abusing her and she won’t do anything about it, but when Miroku moves into their building, things start to get a little tense MirokuSango AU Update: CHAPTER IV IS FINALLY UP! as well as chapters with x's have been revised
1. 222 x

Disclaimer: No I don't own any of this and you all know it so let's just move on shall we?  
  
Author's Note: Sango's boyfriend Naraku is abusing her and she won't do anything about it, but when Miroku moves into their building, things start to get a little tense  
  
I've updated the chapters a bit. Meaning the chapters with x's have been added to or fixed. I promise once I get the first parts of the story-line correct more will come ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Drown It Out  
  
By: Taiji-Ya  
  
Chapter I: 222  
  
"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"  
  
They heard the familiar screams through their walls. The usual, thumps and crashes of breaking glass. Fist on skin. But all they could do was turn their music up louder, and try to drown it out  
  
* * *  
  
"218...218...where the hell is 218?"  
  
The striking young college boy found himself wandering down an apartment hallway, full of 21-somethings, but never spotting the one number he was looking for. It was his first time in the building, carrying his small amount of luggage with him as he walked. He often heard giggling behind him, but never once did the offenders show their faces. He knew he was good- looking, and he often used it to his advantage, but if only his new admirers would step out in the open he could ask them where his new home was.  
  
"This is just great..." he muttered.  
  
After awhile he started noticing that he was in the 220's.  
  
"This is crazy. It's like they took out my room, because they knew I was coming." He pondered this for a bit, but his concentration was soon broken by a sound from room 222.  
  
"I'm sorry! Naraku please! I swear we were just talking!"  
  
Came the muffled cry, a woman's cry, form inside the room. He heard a loud thump, and a small whimper.  
  
"I'm going to work"  
  
A new voice, a low, gruff male's voice he took to be Naraku's came into play. It sounded closer like he was walking towards the door. His suspicions proved right when the door blew roughly open. Naraku, stepping into the hallway. He wasn't a big man, but not small either. Whether large or not, though, he looked a man not to be messed with. With long black hair and cold dark eyes, he seemed devoid of any emotion at all. All a mask, though, he decided, there was plenty of cruel hard emotion there.  
  
The man gave him a quick glance then walked away, leaving the door open behind him.  
  
The poor lost boy didn't want to intrude, but what he'd heard didn't sound good. He slowly crept towards the door and laid his hand on the knob, about to pull it back and look in.  
  
"Hey. You new here?"  
  
He nearly flew out of his skin at the sound of a young voice behind him. He spun around to see a boy of about 12 with a cheerful face and bouncy red hair.  
  
"Yeah..." he jumped again as he heard a small click from behind him, his eyes traveled to the door that had just closed. He shook it off and looked at the boy, "Yeah. I'm a little lost. You know where room 218 is?"  
  
"Sure!" the boy chirped, "It's down this way. We were wondering who'd be moving in there. It's a tricky place to find, they put the numbers on wrong or something. My name's Shippou by the way"  
  
"Miroku," he stated his name while picking up his stuff and following the energetic boy who was now chattering on about living with friends and him being right across from them.  
  
"Here we are!"  
  
He pointed to a door marked 218, between 224 and 226 and not far from the mysterious Naraku house, 222.  
  
"Thanks kid," Miroku pulled out his key and slipped it into the keyhole, cursing as the knob stuck. He gave it a sharp turn and slammed the door with his shoulder. It swung open and hit the wall.  
  
"Home sweet home," he muttered.  
  
"You want some help?" the boy grabbed his things and brought them in for him, without waiting for an answer.  
  
"Sure," he answered anyway, while looking around.  
  
The walls had holes in them in various places along with marks that looked strangely like foot prints. One of the windows was open and the carpet was peeling. Some places didn't even have carpet. He made his way into the kitchen and found a leaky faucet and cabinet doors about to fall off their hinges. A cockroach or two scurried past his feet. He didn't even want to see his bed room, let alone the bathroom.  
  
"Kinda gross isn't it..." Shippou commented, as if reading Miroku's thoughts.  
  
"Yeah, but I got it cheap," he walked back into the living room and looked around with his hands on his hips, "I've got my work cut out for me that's for sure. But I'll worry about that later. You want some cocoa, the Winter's getting mighty cold real fast, and it looks like you could use some warming up."  
  
"Yeah sure!"  
  
Miroku didn't dare say anything about what a draft he was going to get from the wind. Maybe if he didn't say it, it wouldn't happen. He put a pot on the stove and prayed that the water wasn't poisoned.  
  
"So, how's life here in this rickety old place?" Miroku started up a simple conversation as he sat down at the table across from the boy. As his butt connected with the seat he crnged, waiting for it to snap under his weight, but all he received was a warning of creaking, crackling wood.  
  
"It's ok I guess. I live just across the way with Kagome and her boyfriend Inuyasha. She's really nice to me but he's not all that pleasant of a person"  
  
"No?" his thoughts wandered again to room 222 wondering if this bouncy little kid perhaps lived there. But then he remembered that the female voice had cried Naraku not Inuyasha. Well, in anyway he was curious about the helpful lad, "Well, most little brothers don't care for their sister's boyfriends."  
  
The kettle started whistling and he quickly stood to shut the noisy thing up. After taking it off the stove he searched about his small amounts of food and pulled out a packet of instant cocoa. Back home he had been one of the best cooks around, having taken over after his mother died. But now he was left with a mere hot water and instant cocoa. He walked back over, setting two cups out on the table with a half full kettle between them. He didn't know why he had made so much, perhaps he was just thirsty.  
  
"Weren't you listening earlier?!" Miroku had to jump in surprise at Shippou's sudden putburst over his cup of cocoa. He had to admit he wasn't, "She's a friend of my family's. After my ma and pa died I was allowed to live with Kagome and her ninny of a boyfriend"  
  
Miroku snickered a bit at this, "Perhaps it's a jealousy thing then? Could it be that you've got some sort of a crush on your guardian Kagome?"  
  
"I do not! And besides, Inuyasha'a always so over her it wouldn't matter if I did! He's got a fowl mouth and he acts like a dog. I dunno what she sees in him"  
  
Listening to the young boy, the new inhabitant of what was beginning to seem like a rather helter skelter apartment building let it sink in that he was soon to make some friends here. His first one had been a 12 year old boy. Not that he minded. He'd always liked kids. This was promising to be an interesting accomidation.  
  
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Author's Note: Like it so far? I love AU fics. Please e-mail me or r/r if you like it! Thanks! Next chapter is coming quick 


	2. Ice and Hot Cocoa x

Disclaimer: Not mine. Not mine. Not mine.  
  
Author's note: Chapter twos up! Told ya it'd be quick. Well, now Kagome and Sango are on the scene  
  
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Drown It Out  
  
By: Taiji-Ya  
  
Chapter II: Ice and Hot Cocoa-x  
  
"You need to stand up for yourself!"  
  
Miroku and Shippou looked up from their cocoa, hearing a high female voice outside. The one being yelled at spoke in barely above a whisper. They couldn't pick up the words. The first person sighed.  
  
"But it's wrong...he shouldn't treat you like that..."  
  
He stood and walked to the door, one, out of curiosity and two because he didn't like women being mistreated. He peered through the door and saw a young woman, a few years younger than him, with long black hair and a cute winter getup talking to a slightly older woman, still younger than him, with dark brown hair, a bruised face and clothes that skillfully covered all of her skin. He was disgusted to think he knew why. He cleared his throat and the first girl looked up.  
  
"Oh! Excuse me were we...bothering...you...Are you new here? I don't think I know you."  
  
"Yeah, I just moved in"  
  
"Kagome!" Shippou peered out from behind Miroku.  
  
"Sippou! What are you doing in there?" she eyed Miroku suspiciously.  
  
"Kagome! Kagome!" he was practically bouncing, "This is Miroku! I showed him where his apartment was because it's the hard one to find, and then I helped him with his stuff and he made me some cocoa-! Sango, you OK?"  
  
"Yeah...I ran into a pole. Didn't see it coming I guess," she spoke very quietly, and even right next to her Miroku barely heard her.  
  
Somehow he wished he hadn't though. He knew she was lying. And he knew perfectly well that she was the woman in 222.  
  
"Oh, that was very kind of you Miroku..." Kagome trailed off, seeing him watching Sango. She wished he wouldn't stare but something about the look he was giving her made her words stop in her throat.  
  
"Sango...?" he said her name softly and she looked at him then quickly averted her eyes.  
  
He moved his hand under her chin and lifted it so she was looking at him. Now, not only was Miroku quite good-looking, but he was well known as a charmer, and a bit of a lech, but with something like this he even surprised himself at how gentle he could be.  
  
She tensed at his touch but didn't pull away, she did, though, move her eyes away from his.  
  
"You should get that looked at," he said still holding her chin.  
  
"I...I will...thank you Miroku-san..."  
  
He sighed and let her chin go. He didn't like these new circumstances he was moving into, so to lighten the mood in the swiftly darkening hallway, he gave her a big grin, one that had won him so many girls in the past.  
  
"I've got some ice in my apartment I can take care of that eye for you"  
  
"No...it's OK, I'll just go home and take care of it there...I have some cleaning to do anyway..."  
  
"Oh c'mon," he tempted, "I've got some cocoa already made. I can get you some ice then we can all get to know each other over some cocoa"  
  
She was about to answer again when Kagome put her hand on her friend's back, a mischievous glint in her eyes.  
  
"It'll be fun!" she chirped, "Let's go Sango"  
  
She pushed the reluctant girl into his apartment, Shippou happily bouncing around behind them.  
  
"Yay! Miroku makes the best cocoa I've ever tasted! Better than yours Kagome!"  
  
"Please! Kagome I have to get home...Naraku..."  
  
"Just went to work," Miroku slipped in while walking into the kitchen, "and won't be back for a few hours"  
  
Momentarily stunned, Sango let herself be led to the table, where she, Kagome, and Shippou took a seat. Miroku walked back into the makeshift dining room, with a small baggy of ice and a towel. He pressed it gently against Sango's eye, holding it tight when she flinched.  
  
"You need to keep this on. I know it's cold and uncomfortable but it'll keep the swelling down. Trust me on this one"  
  
She didn't even seem to hear him.  
  
"How did you..."  
  
She watched him with more curiosity than fear now, feeling as if she'd seen him before. And as she watched him work in the kitchen, even as he brought the cocoa she realized she had.  
  
"You were..."  
  
He nodded, now certain that she was in that apartment. He wasn't sure how much he liked this Naraku fellow. He hadn't even looked like a nice fellow and if he was abusing this sweet woman than in Miroku's eyes he barely had a right to crawl across this earth.  
  
Kagome looked between the two and let a small smile cross her lips. This Miroku fellow was being awfully nice to her and it seemed like Shippou like him quite a bit. He certainly was treating them better than Naraku ever had. Infact he barely let them walk past his door without a glare while Miroku invited them right in. She felt bad for him to stay in such a messy place but he was smiling and that was enough. Indeed he was smiling at Sango who had started blushing under his gaze. Maybe something good would come of this after all. A plan was formulating in her mind.  
  
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Author's Note: Whee! I love it when Miroku's being sweet. Next chapter coming soon. I still gotta write that one so be patient. And please! Email me or R/R! I love comments 


	3. As It Should Be x

Disclaimer: -sigh- still not mine  
  
Author's Note: Chapter III finally up! Sorry to keep you all in suspense, And thank you for the reviews! I'm working on the whole Sango being weak thing; I realized it after I had already posted the first two chapters, anyway! On with the...story...!  
  
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Drown It Out  
  
By: Taiji-Ya  
  
Chapter III: As It Should Be-x  
  
Dark had started to fall on the poor little apartment building, but in the misplaced room 218, darkness seemed very far away. Laughter spilled from every crack, with enough warmth and light to go around.  
  
"...I swear! It was like having a second head that's always nagging about where I've been. And it's not like she didn't know, I couldn't go anywhere without her."  
  
"And that's what? Girlfriend number..."  
  
Kagome and Shippou watched, delighted as Miroku and Sango laughed and joked like old friends. It had been a long time since Kagome had seen her this happy. She'd been with Naraku for so long that Kagome had forgotten how Sango laughed. It sounded good.  
  
"...I ran!"  
  
"You ran?!"  
  
Sango was nearly choking from the effort of trying to drink her cocoa, while at the same time making comments and laughing at Miroku's story. Kagome saw a connection between the two, and that sparked a plot in her twisted little mind. Shippou looked at her questioningly, noticing the grin that had spread across her face. She simply shook her head and continued to watch the two. It was hard to believe that this was the same girl that had cried herself to sleep at night. Kagome knew, her apartment was right next to hers.  
  
"So..." Miroku took a deep breath, exhausted from laughing and story-telling, "What's your history on boyfriends Sango?"  
  
Both Kagome and Sango's heads snapped up, staring at Miroku. His grin remained but Sango's was gone. Lost inside herself once again.  
  
"I have to go..." she murmured and quickly scurried towards the door.  
  
"What is your problem?!" Kagome smacked Miroku hard on the arm.  
  
Miroku opened his mouth to defend himself but was cut off by a small squeak of terror from the hall. He rushed to the door, faster than Kagome or Shippou could even register what was going on.  
  
"I can explain! Please, I swear I can!"  
  
"Hey!" Miroku's shout, entwined itself with Sango's scream as Naraku's hand connected with her face.  
  
Naraku glowered at the girl, curled up on the ground, Kagome and Shippou at her side, then turned his gaze apon the new offender. He sneered, practically growling as he rubbed his hand.  
  
"Wench has a hard face. Good bone-structure. What it should be"  
  
He was delicate looking. But past his outward appearance Miroku saw something that sent a chill down his spine and stopped his words in his throat.  
  
"There's a lot of things about that are just as they should be," he continued, pacing around her, like a cat guarding it's prey, "Her dark hair accents her soft skin rather well, and her eyes always match her clothes. I make sure of that. But of course the most obvious thing, is that she is with me. Right where she should be"  
  
Miroku could tell these words were meant as a threat, but before he could react to them, a weight was thrown against his body, pinning him to the wall. Claw-like hands about his throat. Eyes now staring strait into his. Cold dark eyes. Kagome gasped, holding Sango in her arms.  
  
"But, if I am to come home and she's not where she should be," his dark eyes darted to Miroku's apartment door, then switched back into the painful glare, right into Miroku's eyes, "Then you might just end up not how you should be"  
  
"Naraku stop it!" All heads snapped up to stare at Sango who had pulled herself from Kagome's arms and was now sitting rubbing her red cheek, "He has nothing to do with this! I went in willingly! You leave him alone!"  
  
Kagome sat behind her, with Shippou leaning over her shoulder, a small hand to her mouth. She hadn't heard Sango talk to Naraku like that since they first started going out. And by the look on his face he hadn't either. She quickly grabbed her arm to hold her back but she stood up and made her way over, standing beside him and the pinned Miroku. He slowly let go of him and turned to face her, staring down into her eyes. He was considerably taller than her and quite a bit more menacing like a beast about to pounce.  
  
"I'm only protecting what's rightfully mine," at those words he wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her into a deep, point making kiss. She struggled against him and quickly looked away when he pulled back. With one last glance at Miroku he smirked and walked back into his apartment with the shame faced Sango at his side.  
  
Breathing deeply Miroku leaned against the wall watching them leave. Kagome looked at him sadly, feeling as though it were all her fault, but unable to get any words out she simply watched him with Shippou behind her. Miroku's breathing grew heavier still until he quickly turned and slammed a fist hard against the wall. With his forehead pressed against it he sighed.  
  
"How long as she been going out with him...?" he asked quietly.  
  
"A-a good two or three years now"  
  
Miroku nodded and silently slid over to his door. He grabbed the doorknob that stuck once again. He slammed his shoulder into it in frustration causing it to swing open hard, denting the wall behind it.  
  
"Tell Sango I'm sorry I got her that mess...I was stupid..."  
  
"I will..." Kagome watched him walk into his apartment, closing the door behind him and sighed.  
  
"Kagome?"  
  
"Yes Shippou?  
  
"Why does Sango-chan let him do that?"  
  
"I don't know Shippou...I really don't know...  
  
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Author's Note: Sweet little Shippou. Anyone hate Naraku yet?! Well, now I get to mess with your heads a little, hehe. I've already got the ending figured out, now I just gotta write the rest. Next chapter coming soon! Please e-mail me or R/R 


	4. An Hour Prior

Disclaimer: Still most definitely not mine. I'm not that creative  
  
A/N: Omigod! Could it be?! It's an update! Ring the bells and sound the alarms! There's a new chapter up! I am sosososososososo sorry it took so long to get this written. I had the most ginourmous case of writers block I have ever experienced though. Here it is though, in all its glory. I must thank me friend Emily for helping me with this. If it weren't for her it would have probably been a really boring chapter. Anywho, read and enjoy  
  
Drown It Out  
  
By: Taiji-Ya  
  
Chapter IV: An Hour Prior  
  
"Alright chicka. We have a Christmas party to plan!"  
  
Sango groaned at the all too familiar idea of Kagome's Christmas party.  
  
"Can't we skip it this year? You always put too much nog in the egg nog"  
  
Kagome snorted as she walked back into the living room, carrying a bowl of popcorn.  
  
"That's not true. You just drink too much"  
  
"Same thing"  
  
These nice quiet times were greatly appreciated in both girls' lives. After the day's happenings Kagome had quickly called a girl's night, sending Shippou to Miroku's to which he gladly obliged. In the short time Miroku had been in the building Shippou had tried to be near him at all times. Kagome had thought maybe he was getting in the way but Miroku insisted that it was fine; he was helping him fix up the place. Though if that was true Heaven only knew.  
  
Days and weeks and even a month had passed since the first day Miroku had entered the apartment building, as well as their lives and somehow because of it, things couldn't have gotten much more hectic. Naraku had gotten even nastier than before. Keeping Sango under a tight watch and Miroku on an even tighter one. Since the first day Miroku was shown how the building worked Sango had been brutally abused to almost twice as much as before. Apparently Naraku didn't like the idea of "his girl" falling out of line. Just to see it happen hurt Kagome to the very core, especially what happened just an hour prior.  
  
She had been walking down the hallway with Inuyasha after school and having not seen Sango in class that day she decided to stop by her apartment and see if she was sick or something. From outside, though, Kagome heard the usual shouts and quickly opened the door to hopefully stop something that had already gone too far. In the doorway they appeared to be unnoticed.  
  
"I swear to you he only gave me a ride to school!" only Sango was visible from where they were standing and she was up against the wall, her face swollen and bloody as she screamed at someone who must have been in front of her.  
  
"You expect me to believe that, you miserable little wench?!" from in front of her they heard the sound of heavy breathing and the monstrous yells of what could have only been Naraku. Their suspicions were proven correct as he came stomping towards her, his eyes ablaze and his raven hair a flurry of anger in his face. He looked quite menacing in a way that snake might look to a mouse that's about to be devoured whole. In his hand he held what appeared to be the leg of a chair, which didn't seem all that unusual seeing the state the apartment was in. He stopped before her, mere inches away and glowered down at her quivering form, "He's been ogling you ever since he entered the building. And you expect me to believe that he gave you a ride out of the pure kindness of his heart?!"  
  
"It wasn't from any kindness! I asked him and he said yes! I would have asked you had you not been passed out with a hangover on the couch!"  
  
"How dare you!" At these thundering words he brought the leg down hard across the side of her face, the pure force of it knocking Sango to the ground. Tears streamed down her face, mixing with the blood of a dozen scratches and scrapes. She whimpered but didn't fall. Her shaky arms the only things keeping her face from landing in the carpet. "How dare you speak to me that way?! After all I've done for you! I gave you a home to live in after your parents died!"  
  
"You gave me a wonderful home!" she screamed back, glaring up at him. In her eyes most would have mistaken the fire to be of hatred, but anyone who knew Sango, knew that the look was the one she used to cover up despair. She loved this man and everyone knew it, why though no one could ever tell, "And because of this home I didn't get to keep my brother! He got sent off to some foster parents all because of you!"  
  
"You hold your tongue, bitch!" he quickly brought up his foot, giving her a good hard kick in the ribs. Knocking the wind from her lungs and causing her to fall onto her side. She curled up into a ball at his feet, shivering and whimpering, trying to bring air into her burning lungs.  
  
At this point Kagome was clutching the front of Inuyasha's shirt, tears running down her face to see her friend in such a state. To see her strong, brave friend beaten down by the man she loved. She hated being so helpless. In such a way Inuyasha did as well, but he intended to do something about it. He pulled Kagome off his shirt and entered the apartment, for Kagome's sake and Sango's as well. By the time he got to the two, Naraku had already walloped her hard in the head with the wooden leg once again, as he brought it up for another attack, though; Inuyasha grabbed it and wrenched it from his hand.  
  
"That's enough! You've proved your point not stop before you kill her!" he tossed the leg to the side and glared down at him, trying to look as menacing as possible before the angry terror before him. Never out loud would he admit, but Naraku scared even him sometimes.  
  
Naraku looked up, breathing hard and practically glowing with fury. He watched the man before him, before straitening up and nudging Sango with his foot.  
  
"I wasn't gonna kill her. She's weak, that's all." He looked down at her and took a deep breath, "I'm going out tonight. You get on over to Kagome's in case I come home drunk. But so help me. If I hear you were anywhere near that bloody Miroku guy again I'll kill you both."  
  
With that he brushed roughly past Inuyasha and headed towords the door. As he got closer Kagome cringed away. He looked at her for a second and nodded before leaving the mess behind him. Kagome and Inuyasha took his advice and helped Sango over to their apartment, despite her complaints that she had to clean up. Once there Inuyasha decided that he'd head over to Miroku's for a while and help out. Give them some time alone.  
  
Now, a good hour from then, Sango sat on the floor in the living room of Kagome's apartment, sporting a few band aids on her forehead and an ice pack for her left side of her face where he had hit her with the chair leg. They had cleverly warmed a bag of rice and wrapped it about her middle for relief to her ribs. As usual, Sango was laughing and cheerful as ever, obviously pretending nothing happened. The poor girl had gotten very good at acting as though everything were all right.  
  
Kagome laughed and took a seat on the couch above her friend throwing another piece of popcorn at the back of her head.  
  
"It is not the same thing. Last year you snogged almost every guy in the apartment. Including Inuyasha who is still traumatized by the way. And not to mention the fact that we all then got to watch you and Naraku make out on the couch all night."  
  
Sango looked down and bit her swelling lip, sadness growing once again in her eyes, "Yeah...he's always so sweet at your Christmas parties...sort of like he used to be..."  
  
"I know what you mean..." Kagome sighed and watched her friend's heart being broken yet again. It had been like this for so long, it was hard to remember what they used to be like, "He used to be so social and cheerful. You know he actually used to baby-sit Shippou while were at school. No joke! You two were so in love...we thought for sure you'd be married in a week..."  
  
"We still are in love!" Sango leapt at her relationship's defense causing a slit in her lip to reopen, "Ow...I mean...we still love each other...it's just not as important anymore to share it with the whole world anymore..."  
  
"I hate to be so blunt but...tell me one romantic thing he's done for you lately."  
  
"Lately?...well...the sunrise."  
  
"The sunrise?"  
  
She nodded dreamily, "Yeah, the sunrise. Early in the mornings sometimes he wakes me up and tells me he wants to show me something. So I groggily get up and let him lead me out of the apartment. I do say I get some odd looks, dressed up in an old white nightgown that I'm awfully close to not fitting in anymore, being led by a man with pale skin and oddly black hair"  
  
Kagome sat back and watched sadly as her friend remembered the small things he's done for her within the last couple of years. It seemed to her like the only thing Sango had of holding onto anymore.  
  
"We get into the elevator," Sango continued, "and he waits there with his arms wrapped around me as I shiver in the early morning cold until we reach the roof. He walks me out into the wind, his arms still around me until we reach the edge. And there he holds me, making sure I don't miss a minute of the light rising over the horizon..."  
  
"But..." Kagome watched as Sango was sucked right back into her only happy place left, leaving her to think that Naraku was just as he always had been. But that wasn't the case anymore. He had changed. Drastically and dangerously into an abusive, pain bringing monster. There had to be some way she could get Sango to realize that she needed to move on, "how many times has he done this sort of thing in the last year?"  
  
"Well...um...I'm sure we went up about a month ago..."  
  
"Sango, don't you see it?! He's hurting you! Mentally and physically! It hurts us all to see this happening to you! You're a strong person, Sango! Think about high school. Remember when that upper classman was messing with your brother? You let him have it then! And he never messed with you or your brother again! You can stand up for yourself! I've seen it!"  
  
"I wasn't standing up for myself...I was standing up for Kohaku..."  
  
"Even still! Remember kendo?! Remember track?! Remember everything we did in gym class?! You left everyone else in the dust! I hate to see you acting so weak over some guy"  
  
"He's not just some guy! He's...I love him Kagome..."  
  
"Yeah?" Kagome sighed and watched her battered friend get lost inside herself again, "Well, I think Miroku loves you..."  
  
"What?!" a great blush quickly spread across Sango's cheeks as the old trick fell into place. Every girl knew that if something was wrong you could always get some blood rushing by talking about guys, "He does not!"  
  
"I dunno..." Kagome grinned at Sango, acting innocent as she twirled a lock of black hair around her finger, "When you asked him for a ride this morning he had had his keys faster than you could blink"  
  
Sango picked up a pillow and lopped her friend in the head with it, "Shut up! He does not like me!"  
  
As if on a cue a small knock could be heard from the door, soon after followed by Miroku poking his head in the door.  
  
"Erm, excuse me but...does Shippou have some sort of a bedtime? Because he claims he doesn't."  
  
"Hmph. He does does he? Well, you tell him to be in bed by nine or I'll personally come over and tuck him in myself"  
  
"Can do. Thanks Kagome. I'll see you two tomorrow." He quickly slipped back out the door, but a second later he was back and carefully not staring to hard at Sango's face, "Oh, by the way. Sango if you need a ride to school tomorrow I'd be happy to give you one."  
  
With a click of the door, he was gone again leaving Kagome to smirk at Sango.  
  
"Oh, by the way," Kagome threw on a high-pitched, dreamy mimic of his voice, "If you need a ride I'd be very very happy to give you one"  
  
Sango grabbed the pillow again and smacked her friend silly with it, "Shut up. Now, about that egg nog..."  
  
A/N: Huzzah! There it is! Isn't it beautiful! Probably the longest it's ever taken me to update anything! I'm hoping the rest of the chapters will be longer like this one, so stay tuned, and as usual e-mail me or R/R I LOVE comments. Some Miroku and Sango lovin is comin up real soon I promise. As well as a Christmas party 


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